Program Description
“Our Water” is an innovative curriculum for 4th grade that combines
visual, literary, and performing arts instruction with water conservation lessons
from the Water Education Foundation’s
“California Water Story.”

BENEFITS:

To
Sponsoring BAWUA Member

To
School District, Schools & Students

·Fulfills
BMP #8 at a low cost and flexible levels of implementation

·Provides
free arts instruction from trained arts educators

·Requires
no additional agency staff resources

·Stimulates
creative approaches in other curriculum areas

·Enhances
agency’s water conservation image

·Requires
no additional teachers or overhead

·Creates “spillover” effect
for water conservation messages to participants’ families

·Generates
positive community exposure and support through a final event showcasing
the students’
creative projects

For more information about this unique program, please contact:Ms. Nicole SandkullaBay Area Water Users Association650-349-3000

Background:

“Our Water” was developed by Kollage Community School for the
Arts in Belmont in response to a request from Mid-Peninsula Water District
for a creative and user-friendly approach to water conservation education at
the elementary school level. The result is an integrated curriculum combining
water conservation lessons from the Water Education Foundation’s “ California
Water Story”
curriculum for 4th grade, with instruction in visual, performing, and literary
arts. The program was implemented in all 4th grade classes in the Belmont/Redwood
Shores School District in February of 2001. Implementation of the program was
expanded in the 2001/2002 school year to schools in the Burlingame, Foster
City, and Laguna Salida (Pacifica) school districts. In the Spring of 2002,
Mid- Peninsula Water District won the prestigious ACWA Clair A. Hill Water
Agency Award for Excellence, an annual program that recognizes outstanding
achievements by public water agencies, for the Our Water Program.

Purpose:

The purpose of “Our Water” is to enhance learning about water
conservation education concepts through creative as well as logical processes.

Goals:

Program goals include demonstrable evidence of students’ ability to
apply critical thinking and creative expression to water conservation concepts;
improved water conservation awareness as measured on pre-and post-program tests;
and enhanced appreciation of and interest in the arts by both teachers and
students at participating schools.

Implementation Process:

The “Our Water” curriculum is presented in 50-minute sessions
conducted once a week over 9 weeks. Each school or class is assigned an arts
instructor in visual art, dance, or poetry. Pre- and post-tests are given to
students to measure the effectiveness of the program in enhancing their water
conservation awareness. At the conclusion of the program, a “culminating
event” may be held to showcase what the students have created during
this learning experience. In the case of the Belmont schools, the culminating
event was held at the College of Notre Dame Theater. Papier-mache animals and
artwork were displayed in the lobby, and a large-scale mural designed by students
from one school served as the backdrop for poetry readings and dance performance
by students from other participating schools.

Cost:

Cost of the program varies according to the number of schools and classrooms
that will be participating. A tiered-cost plan provides budgeting flexibility.
The cost ranges from $740-$880 per classroom, depending on the number of classrooms
to be included. This cost includes the instructor’s time and materials,
program manager time, and copy of California Water Story curriculum (provided
to classroom teacher).